A large part of the Bible are letters (pre-email and pre-texting messages) from one Christian to another, or to a group of Christians. The writer is sometimes responding to questions being asked. Sometimes, he is trying to encourage them as a result of circumstances he is aware of.
In one letter, the writer begins by affirming that the world is going to end soon. The writer saw things happening in "current events" that corresponded with what Jesus said would happen right before the end of the world. Unfortunately, the end of the world has been coming soon for a long time.
He was wrong in his timing, but he was right in his encouragement. The things Jesus said were signs of the end have been part of the human condition since Adam sinned. But they have existed in greater or less intensity. It isn't hard to observe that we live in a time of increased "war and rumors of war. " So, I could look at the world and say, "the end is near. "
Why would Jesus tell us about the end of the world? Why would he include signs that could lead any follower of his to conclude that the end is soon? Did he do it on purpose? Maybe he did.
It doesn't take a genius to see that if we knew there was a finite, countable number of days before the end of all things, we would probably approach life differently. Perhaps radically different.
How would you live if you knew this was going to be your last Christmas?
No comments:
Post a Comment